MEANING OF "ISLAM"

 

Taking the term "Islam," it is important to emphasize that it is not derived from the name of any particular person, race, or locality.  A Muslim considers the term used by some writers, "Mohammedanism," to be an offensive violation of the very spirit of Islamic teaching.  The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, is not worshipped, nor is he regarded as either the founder of Islam or the author of its Holy Book, the Quran.

The term "Islam" is derived from the arabic root (SLM) which connotes "peace" or "submission."  Indeed, the proper meaning of "Islam" is the attainment of peace, both inner and outer peace, by submission of oneself to the Will of God.  And when we say submit, we are talking about conscious, loving and trusting submission to the Will of God, the acceptance of His grace, and the following of His path.  In that sense, the Muslim regards the term Islam, not as an innovation that came in the 7th Century, Christian era, with the advent of Prophet Muhammad, but as the basic mission of all the Prophets throughout history (Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, etc.).  That universal mission was finally culminated and perfected in the last of these Prophets, Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon them all.
 

ISLAMIC MONOTHEISM
The next essential concept that needs to be clarified is the term "Allah."  What does it mean?  It should be emphasized first that the term "Allah" has no connotation at all of a tribal god, an Arabian or even a Muslim god.  The term "Allah" in Arabic simply means the One and Only True, Universal God of all (the same as Eloh in Aramaic, the language of Jesus).  To think that Allah is different from God, with a capital 'G,' is no more valid than saying the French Christians worship a different god because they call him "Dieu."

     What are the basic attributes of Allah?  The Quran mentions the "most beautiful names" (or attributes) of Allah.  Instead of enumerating them all, let's examine a few.  Some attributes emphasize the transcendence of Allah.  The Quran repeatedly makes it clear that Allah is beyond our limited perception.

"There is nothing whatever comparable unto Him."  (al-Shura 42:11)     "No vision can grasp Him, but His grasp is over all vision."   (al-Anam 6:103)  
A Muslim never thinks of God as having any particular image, whether physical, human, material or otherwise.  Such attributes as "The Perfectly-Knowing," " The Eternal," "The Omnipotent," "The Omnipresent," "The Just," and "The Sovereign" also emphasize transcendence.  But this does not mean in any way that for the Muslim, Allah is mere philosophical concept or a deity far removed.  Indeed, alongside this emphasis on the transcendence of Allah, the Quran also talks about Allah as "personal" God who is close, easily approachable, Loving, Forgiving, and Merciful.  The very first passage in the Quran, which is repeated dozens of times, is "In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful..."

The Quran tells us that when Allah created the first human

"He breathed into him something of His spirit,"  (al-Sajdah 32:9) and that "Allah is closer to the human than his jugular vein."
In another beautiful and moving passage we are told, "
"When my servants ask you (O Muhammad) concerning me, then surely I am near to them.  I listen to every suppliant who calls on Me.  Let them respond to My call and obey My command that they may be led aright."
     For the Muslim, monotheism does not mean simply the unity of God, because there can be different persons in unity.  Monotheism in Islam is the absolute Oneness and Uniqueness of Allah, which precludes the notion of persons sharing in Godhead.  The opposite of monotheism in Islam is called in Arabic "shirk," association of others with Allah.  This includes not only polytheism, but also dualism (believing in one God for good or light and another for evil or darkness).  The concept of "shirk" also includes pantheism, the idea that God is in everything.  All forms of God-incarnate philosophies are excluded by Islam's monotheism, as is blind obedience to dictators, to clergy, or to one's own whims and desires.  These are regarded as forms of "associating" others with Allah (shirk), whether by believing that such creatures of Allah possess divinity or by believing that they share the Divine Attributes of Allah.

     It should be added that, to the Muslim, monotheism is not simply a dogma.  Islam's pure, pristine and strict monotheism is much more than a thought or a belief; it is something that deeply influences the Muslim's whole outlook on life.
 

NATURE OF THE HUMAN
We have talked about Allah.  What about you and me?  Who is the human being?  Who are you and I?  And why are we here on earth?  The Quran teaches that we humans are created of three components.  We are created from clay, representing the material or carnal element.  We are endowed with intellect, that is Allah-given, to be used, not to be put on the shelf.  Reason may be insufficient but it is not the antithesis of faith, either.  And thirdly, we are endowed with the spirit of Allah, which was breathed into us (al-Sajdah 32:7, al-Baqarah 2:31, al-Hijr 15:29).

The Muslim does not see human existence here on earth as punishment for eating from the forbidden tree.  That event is regarded as an experiantial lesson for Adam and Eve before they came to earth.   The Quran teaches that even before the creation of the first human it was Allah's plan to establish human life and civilization on earth (al-Baqarah 2:30).  Thus, the Muslim does not view the human as all evil, nor as all good, but rather as responsible.  It is stated in several places in the Quran that Allah created the human to be His "khalifah," His trustee or viceregent on earth.  Humankind's basic trust, our responsibility, is to worship Allah.

Worship for the Muslim is not only engaging in formal rituals, but it is any activity in accordance with the Will of Allah for the benefit of oneself and of humanity at large.  Thus, the Muslim views the earth, its resources and ecology as a gift from Allah to humans to harness and use in fulfillment of the trust for which we shall all be held responsible.  That is why the Quran speaks highly of learning.  The first word revealed of the Quran was, "Recite," or "read."  As long as they were true to their faith and to Quranic injuctions about learning, Muslims established a civilization that saw great advances in science and in the humanities.  Not only did they preserve earlier scientific heritage but they also added to it and paved the way for European renaissance.  When Muslims again become true to their faith such history is bound to repeat itself.
 

ALLAH-HUMANKIND RELATIONSHIP
We talked of Allah and of humankind.  Now we must ask what is their basic relationship.  The Quran teaches us that the human race is given an innate pure nature called "fitrah."  Knowledge of Allah and innate spirituality are inherent in human existence, but this spirituality can betray us if it is not led in the right direction.  To depend on a merely human feeling of the guiding spirit is dangerous.

Many groups, even cults, claim to be guided by the spirit or by God or by revelation, yet these groups hold divergent, even contradictory, beliefs.  We find people behaving in contradictory ways who claim nonetheless that each is doing the Will of God.  "I feel," they say, "that the spirit guides and directs me."

     A credible source of revelation is imperative.  Throughout history Allah has selected particular individuals to convey His message, to receive His revelation and to exemplify it for mankind.  For some of these Prophets, holy books or scriptures were given revealing Allah's commands and guidance.  Some Prophets mentioned in the Quran are Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, Soloman, John the Baptist, Jesus, and, finally, the last Prophet, Muhammad, peace be upon them all.

These Prophets carried the same basic message:

"Not an apostle did We send before you without this inspiration sent by Us to him: that there is no god but I; therefore worship and serve Me."   (al-Anbiya 21:25) 
Further, the Quran insists on calling all those Prophets Muslims, because a Muslim is one who submits to the Will of Allah.  Their followers are called Muslims as well.  Thus, it is an article of faith for a Muslim to believe in all these Prophets.  Indeed, Muslims are warned that anyone who accepts some Prophets and rejects others, in fact rejects them all.  For a Muslim, to believe in Moses while rejecting Jesus or Muhammad is against the very teaching of Moses.  And to believe in Jesus but reject Moses or Muhammad is to violate what Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad stood for.

For a Muslim to believe in Muhammad and reject either Moses or Jesus is to violate his own Holy Book.

"Those who deny Allah and His apostles, saying: 'We believe in some but reject others,' and those who wish to take a course midway, they are in truth equally unbelievers and We have prepared for unbelievers a humiliating punishment."   (al-Nisa 4:150-151)
 

ACCOUNTABILITY AND SALVATION
We have talked about Allah, about the human, and about the relationship between them.  What about accountability?  How can we humans, from the Islamic perspective, overcome "sin"?  The Quran teaches that life is a test, that earthly life is temporary (al-Mulk 67:2).  The Muslim believes in resurrection, accountability, and the day of judgment and reward and punishment.

     For a Muslim, to demand perfection in order to gain salvation is not practical.  It is demanding the impossible and is unjust.  Islam teaches a person to be humble and to learn that we cannot achieve salvation by our own righteousness.  The reconciliation of the "sinful" human with Allah is contingent on three elements:  the most important is the Grace, Mercy, and Generosity of Allah.  Then there are good deeds and correct belief.  Correct belief and good deeds are prerequisites for God's Grace and Forgiveness and for rising above our common shortcomings.  How can sin be washed away?

The Quran gives the prescription:

"If anyone does evil or wrongs his own soul, but afterwards seeks Allah's forgiveness, he will find Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful."  (al-Nisa 4:110)  Another moving passage reads, "Those things that are good remove evil deeds."  (Hud 11:114) 

Islam teaches repentance, stopping evil ways, feeling sorry for what one has done, and determining to follow the path of Allah as much as humanly possible.  The Muslim does not believe in the necessity of the shedding of blood, much less innocent blood, to wash away sins.  He believes that Allah is not interested in blood or sacrifice, but in sincere repentance.
The Quran puts it clearly:

"But My Mercy extends to all things."  (al-Araf 7:156)
 

THE APPLIED ASPECT
How about the application?  Are we just talking theology?  Since the human is Allah's trustee, it would be inconsistent for a Muslim to separate the various aspects of life, the spiritual and the material, state and religion.  We hear a lot about the "five pillars of Islam," but they are often presented as the whole of Islam, many times in a shallow way.  They are not the whole of Islam any more than one can claim to have a functional house composed exclusively of five concrete pillars.

You also need the cieling, walls, tables, windows and other things.  As the mathematicians put it, it is a necessary but not a sufficient condition.  One is not a true believer until one wants for his brother what one wants for himself.  What may appear as separate compartments of life simply does not exist for the Muslim.  A Muslim does not say, "this is business and this is moral"; one must be honest in everything one does.   Moral, spiritual, economic, social and governmental are interrelated, because everything, including Caesar, belongs to Allah and to Allah alone.
 

MUSLIM/NON-MUSLIM RELATIONS
In conclusion and against this background, what is the implication for the Muslims in their attitudes toward non-Muslims?  To start with, and we must be frank about it, the Quran makes it incumbent on the Muslim to convey Allah's message in its final form, the Quran, to all humanity.  We are not talking here about conversion.  Indeed, to turn to Islam, the religion of all the prophets in its final form, is not to turn one's back on the preceding Prophets.

It is a reversion and augmentation, rather than a conversion, because it does not involve changing one's basic spiritual nature; it is a return to the pure monotheism in which we were all created.  In the Quran, pure human nature is a "Muslim nature," which knows its Lord and wishes to submit to Him.
The Quran states,

"Let there be no compulsion in religion."  (al-Baqarah 2:256)

Thus, the Muslim is taught to be tolerant toward others.  Indeed, the Quran not only prohibits compulsion in religion, but it prohibits aggression as well, although it allows defense:

"Fight in the cause of Allah those who fight you, but commit no aggression; for Allah loves not transgressors."  (al-Baqarah 2:190)
     In addition, we find that within this broad rule of dealing with non-Muslims "the People of the Book" is a special term accorded to Jews and Christians in the Quran.  Why "People of the Book"?  Because the Muslim makes a clear distinction between a polytheist or an atheist and those who follow the Prophets who originally received revelations from Allah.  Even though a Muslim might point out areas of theological difference, we still believe in the Devine origin of those revelations in their "original" forms.

     How should a Muslim treat these "People of the Book"?
 Says the Quran:

"Allah forbids you not, with regard to those who fight you not for your faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them: for Allah loves those who are just.  Allah only forbids you, with regard to those others who fight you for your faith, and drive you out of your homes and support others in driving you out, from turning to them for friendship and protection.  It is such as turn to them in these circumstances, that do wrong."  (al-Mumtahanah 60:8-9)